EL PASO, TEXAS (KFOX14\/CBS4) \u2014 Ahead of Election Day, Esther Labib-Kiyarash, a local resident of El Paso living with young-onset Parkinson’s disease, is urging the community to discuss Proposition 14. <\/p>\n
Proposition 14 proposes a $3 billion allocation to create the Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas to research neurological conditions, including dementia, Alzheimer’s, and Parkinson’s disease. <\/p>\n
It is one of 17 constitutional amendments that Texas voters will vote on in the next few weeks, with early voting already underway and running through Oct. 31. <\/p>\n
With Election Day quickly approaching on Nov. 4, Labib-Kiyarash spoke to KFOX14\/CBS4 about the proposition and what it could mean for her if the amendment is approved.<\/p>\n
“It is going to make Texas the leader in the nation for brain disease research,” Labib-Kiyarash said, emphasizing the importance of the amendment. <\/p>\n
She added that the proposition could impact many, “It is a growing disease and impacts so many people, not just Parkinson’s, but dementia and Alzheimer’s. I can’t really think of anyone that I know who doesn’t have some connection to one of those conditions.” <\/p>\n
In an effort to continue to garner support for the amendment, Labib-Kiyarash also recently participated in an advertisement for the Michael J. Fox Foundation, filmed at her home in El Paso. The foundation is a non-profit organization founded in 2000 by Canadian-American actor Michael J. Fox, who also has Parkinson’s, to find treatments and a cure for Parkinson’s disease.<\/p>\n
According to the Texas Tribune, the measure has already received bipartisan support from a majority of lawmakers and was one of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick\u2019s legislative priorities.<\/p>\n
If approved, a constitutional amendment would allocate an initial $3 billion from state surplus revenue to a new research fund. <\/p>\n
A board, appointed by Patrick, House Speaker Dustin Burrows, and Gov. Greg Abbott, would oversee the approval of research proposals. <\/p>\n
The institute will then receive up to $300 million annually, aiming to attract physicians, researchers, and experts to Texas. <\/p>\n
Additionally, according to the Texas Tribune, the initiative is said to be modeled after the state’s Cancer Research and Prevention Institute, the nation’s second-largest cancer research funder.<\/p>\n
RECOMMENDED: Early voting for Texas\u2019 17 statewide propositions is under way. What voters need to know.<\/a><\/p>\n